Well, there seems little likelihood I shall be able to attend the Ashcan Issue 3 Launch, as I am presently in the grip of a rather severe Cold/Flu. Whatever its name, it is a nuisance; I was due to work tonight but this is going to be my second night calling in Sick. Still, it may been a chance to catch up of reading the Weekend newspapers (a luxury I rarely enjoy). For those of you who work Monday to Friday, you cannot begin to understand how I often wish I could savour the pleasure of sleeping in on a Saturday morning (after spending a late night Friday having listened to a band) and spending all Saturday morning (and part of the afternoon) reading the newspaper from cover to cover.... Ahh, yes, I am a shift worker, and this is just but a simple day dream...
Another Dream remains. That every Australian reads and knows the adventures of John Dixon's Air Hawk. I find that every bit of publicity helps in getting that message out there. A few months ago The Weekend Australian (in the August 6-7 2011 Edition) published a review of Floyd Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse presently being reprinted by Fantagraphics Books. It somewhat peeved me at the time that they could choose to review this book and not the Air Hawk that I has sent Cefn Ridout, their comic reviewer, some weeks earlier. I think I was annoyed, and wrote a Letter to the Editor expressing this annoyance, that they saw fit to review an American Book over a local product that I saw as being - modesty aside! - of equal if not greater merit. (Needless to say, the letter was not published.)
However, I felt less aggrieved when I saw Cefn's assessment of Mandy Ord's Book Sensitive Creatures in this weekend's Weekend Australian. It was a well-written and favourable review, and I shall most likely pick up a copy when I see it in the bookstore; not because of Cefn's review, mind you, but because it is an Australian product and I am a sucker for supporting our local comics product. The benefit of the review is merely that it has alerted me to the fact that the book is out there. Otherwise, I would have been totally oblivious to it!
I suppose this is the thing: for Air Hawk to be read and known by every Australian - as I feel it deserves to be - I have to get the message out there. Obviously, having a review in The Weekend Australian is no guarantee of sales: people are going to have to want to buy it before that happens...
However, I felt less aggrieved when I saw Cefn's assessment of Mandy Ord's Book Sensitive Creatures in this weekend's Weekend Australian. It was a well-written and favourable review, and I shall most likely pick up a copy when I see it in the bookstore; not because of Cefn's review, mind you, but because it is an Australian product and I am a sucker for supporting our local comics product. The benefit of the review is merely that it has alerted me to the fact that the book is out there. Otherwise, I would have been totally oblivious to it!
I suppose this is the thing: for Air Hawk to be read and known by every Australian - as I feel it deserves to be - I have to get the message out there. Obviously, having a review in The Weekend Australian is no guarantee of sales: people are going to have to want to buy it before that happens...
So, it was a nice surprise to see a positive book review of John Dixon, Air Hawk and the Flying Doctor appearing in this quarter's Aero Australia magazine (Number 32, October - December 2011 Edition). Again, I am uncertain at this stage whether a positive book review translates into sales (the magazine, after all, has only been on the news-stands for a short while, so it is too early to tell); but at least it is alerting some Aussies that the book is out there! So, to all at Aero Australia, many Thanks for your kind words. Aother reason I was pleased with the contents of the review, was because of the accuracy of the content. Despite sending out Media Releases to Media Outlets, I have always been surprised at the number of factual errors that tend to creep into reporting. Case in point: the Redcliffe and Bayside Herald article reported that "Mr Dixon....[moved] to California where he eventually got married and had three children". I tend to let things like that ride these days; no point in perhaps biting the hand that feeds you, et cetera. Or should I? (John has two children: Andrew and Jaydi.)
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